ing
chain connected them. They came like a line of convicts, marching
forward, and stopped on the open deck near the base of the turret. Dr.
Frank's grim face gazed up at me.

Miko ordered the women and children in a group beside the chained men.
His words to them reached me: "You are in no danger. When we land, be
careful. You will find gravity very different--this is a very small
world."

I flung on the landing lights; the deck glowed with the blue radiance;
the searchbeams shot down beside our hull. We hung now a thousand feet
above the forest glade. I cut off the electronic streams. We poised,
with the gravity plates set at normal, and only a gentle night breeze
to give us a slight side drift. This I could control with the lateral
propeller rudders.

For all my busy landing routine, my mind was on other things. Venza's
swift words back there in the lounge. I was to create a commotion
while the passengers were landing. Why? Had she and Dr. Frank some
last minute desperate purposes?

I determined I would do what she said. Shout, or mis-order the lights.
That would be easy.

I was glad it was night. I had, indeed, calculated our descent so that
the landing would be in darkness. But to what purpose? These brigands
were very alert. There was nothing I could think of to do which would
avail us anything more than a probable swift death under Miko's anger.

"Well done, Gregg!" said Moa.

I cut off the last of the propellers. With scarcely a perceptible jar,
the _Planetara_ grounded, rose like a feather, and settled to rest in
the glade. The deep purple night with stars overhead was around us. I
hissed out our interior air through the dome and hull ports, and
admitted the night air of the asteroid. My calculations--of necessity
mere mathematical approximations--proved fairly accurate. In
temperature and pressure there was no radical change as the dome
windows slid back.

We had landed. Whatever Venza's purpose, her moment was at hand. I was
tense. But I was aware also, that beside me Moa was very alert. I had
thought her unarmed. She was not. She sat back from me; in her hand
was a long thin knife blade.

She murmured tensely, "You have done your part, Gregg. Well and
skillfully done. Now we will sit here quietly and watch them land."

Snap's guard was standing, keenly watching. The lookouts in the
forward and stern towers were also armed; I could see them both gazing
keenly down at the confusion of the blue li